Starmer and Xi agree deal to restrict supply of Chinese-made small boat equipment for use by people smugglers, No 10 says
Andrew Sparrow
Good morning. I’m Andrew Sparrow, picking up from Siraj Datoo.
Overnight the UK government has announced more details of the deal that Keir Starmer and Xi Jinping discussed intended to stop the supply of small boats from China to Europe for use by people smugglers.
The government says:
The new deal … will for the first time enable joint UK-Chinese law enforcement action before boats and engines ever reach criminal networks in Europe.
Last year more than 60% of all engines used by smuggling gangs were found to be branded as Chinese manufactured engines. Inflatable dinghies used in small boat crossings, often made using parts sourced in China, have been enabling gangs to pack ever larger numbers onto single vessels, with recent crossings carrying over 100 people in increasingly life-threatening conditions.
Under the agreement, UK law enforcement agencies will work with Chinese authorities to prevent small boat engines and equipment used in Channel crossings getting into the hands of criminal gangs. This includes intelligence sharing to identify smugglers’ supply routes and direct engagement with Chinese manufacturers to prevent legitimate businesses being exploited by organised crime.
The deal reflects the government’s commitment to active, hard-headed engagement with the world’s major powers to deliver for working people at home.
Key events
After his meeting with Xi Jinping, Keir Starmer had a tour of the Forbidden City in Beijing.
According to PA Media, a Chinese readout of the meeting between Keir Starmer and Xi Jinping stressed that China will not “pose a threat” to other countries.
Setting out what Starmer raised in the meeting, it states that the UK’s policy on Taiwan “remains unchanged and will not change”.
Here are some more pictures from Keir Starmer’s meeting with Xi Jinping in the Great Hall of the People in Beijing.
Starmer and Xi agree deal to restrict supply of Chinese-made small boat equipment for use by people smugglers, No 10 says
Andrew Sparrow
Good morning. I’m Andrew Sparrow, picking up from Siraj Datoo.
Overnight the UK government has announced more details of the deal that Keir Starmer and Xi Jinping discussed intended to stop the supply of small boats from China to Europe for use by people smugglers.
The government says:
The new deal … will for the first time enable joint UK-Chinese law enforcement action before boats and engines ever reach criminal networks in Europe.
Last year more than 60% of all engines used by smuggling gangs were found to be branded as Chinese manufactured engines. Inflatable dinghies used in small boat crossings, often made using parts sourced in China, have been enabling gangs to pack ever larger numbers onto single vessels, with recent crossings carrying over 100 people in increasingly life-threatening conditions.
Under the agreement, UK law enforcement agencies will work with Chinese authorities to prevent small boat engines and equipment used in Channel crossings getting into the hands of criminal gangs. This includes intelligence sharing to identify smugglers’ supply routes and direct engagement with Chinese manufacturers to prevent legitimate businesses being exploited by organised crime.
The deal reflects the government’s commitment to active, hard-headed engagement with the world’s major powers to deliver for working people at home.
Starmer says he made ‘good progress’ on whisky tariffs and visa-free travel to China during talks with Xi
“We made some really good progress on tariffs for whisky, on visa-free travel to China, and on information exchange cooperation on irregular migration,” Starmer told reporters in Beijing after an 80-minute summit with the Chinese leader.
The pair discussed how much whisky tariffs would be reduced and over what timeframe, as well as discussing information on the small boats used in irregular migration into Britain as part of a greater strategic focus on security and defence.
Starmer also said the move to lower whisky tariffs was an example of how he wanted “a much wider opening” for British businesses in China, part of the aim of his trip as he seeks to inject growth into the UK’s sluggish economy.
In its own statement after the meeting, China said it would “actively consider” visa-free travel for UK citizens.
Here’s a picture from inside that summit earlier. If you look closely enough you can spot Starmer (fifth-right) and Xi (sixth left).
Starmer says he discussed Jimmy Lai is talks with Xi
Starmer also said he brought up the case of Jimmy Lai, a former Hong Kong media tycoon and British citizen who was convicted in December of national security crimes.
When pressed about how forcefully he raised issues including the jailing of the pro-democracy campaigner, in addition to the treatment of the Uighur minority, the prime minister said:
We raised those issues, as you would expect.
Part of the rationale for engagement is to make sure that we can both seize the opportunities that are available, which is what we’ve done, but also have a mature discussion about issues that we disagree on.
He noted they had a “respectful discussion” and that was “part and parcel of the reason to engage”.
UK relationship with China is in a ‘good, strong place’
We’ve now got some lines from the prime minister. Speaking after his meeting with China’s Xi Jinping, he said the pair made progress on a number of areas, including tariffs and visa-free travel.
He said:
We had a very good, productive session with real, concrete outcomes and it was a real strengthening of the relationship and that’s in the national interest, because, of course, there are huge opportunities here in China as the second biggest economy in the world, and that’s why we’ve got such a big business delegation.
A lot of discussion was about how we open up access for those opportunities, focusing – as I always do – on how is this going to be delivered back in the United Kingdom? How does it benefit people back at home?
And we made some really good progress on tariffs for whisky, on visa-free travel to China and on information exchange and co-operation on irregular migration, focusing particularly on small boats and engine parts. So a very good, constructive meeting with real outcomes, and that’s very much in our national interest.”
It’s 3pm in Beijing and if you’re just joining us here’s a recap of the latest after Keir Starmer held talks with Xi Jinping in Beijing during the first visit to China by a British prime minister in eight years.
Starmer told Xi that he wanted to build a “sophisticated relationship” with China to boost growth and security, signalling a reset after years of strained ties.
The British prime minister held an 80-minute summit with the Chinese leader at the Great Hall of the People before they lunched together on Thursday – the most important day of Starmer’s four-day visit to China.
Starmer told Xi at the start of their meeting: “China is a vital player on the global stage, and it’s vital that we build a more sophisticated relationship where we can identify opportunities to collaborate, but of course also allow a meaningful dialogue on areas where we disagree.”
Xi said ties with Britain had gone through “twists and turns” that did not serve the interests of either country but that a more “consistent” approach was in both their interests and China stood ready to develop a long-term strategic partnership. “We can deliver a result that can withstand the test of history,” the Chinese leader said, flanked by his top ministers.
Xi also appeared to reprimand Kemi Badenoch, the Conservative leader, who has criticised Starmer for travelling to China this week.
There has been cross-party concern about China’s spying activities in the UK – with the travelling No 10 delegation operating on burner phones – and also Beijing’s human rights abuses. But Starmer began the trip by saying he wanted to bring “stability and clarity” to the bilateral relationship after years of “inconsistency” under the Tories when it went from “golden age to ice age”.
Starmer is the latest western leader to engage in a flurry of diplomacy with China as nations hedge against unpredictability from the US under Donald Trump.
With Guardian staff and agencies
More now on Downing Street saying earlier that Starmer and Xi would announce in Beijing that the UK and China would jointly combat gangs involved in trafficking illegal migrants.
The deal is to focus on reducing the use of Chinese-made engines for small boats that transport people across Europe to claim asylum, Reuters reports.
Downing Street said British and Chinese officials would share intelligence to identify smugglers’ supply routes and work with Chinese manufacturers to prevent legitimate businesses from being exploited by organised crime.
Xi Jinping said after his meeting with Keir Starmer that mutual trust was the bedrock for enduring relations and that China and Britain should expand cooperation in areas including education and healthcare, Reuters has just reported.
On the eve of Starmer’s visit to Beijing he spoke with Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy and the British PM is expected to seek Xi’s support in bringing an end to the conflict in Ukraine.
Xi said as he met Starmer today that the state of the world was “turbulent and fluid” and that more dialogue between the UK and China was “imperative”, whether it was “for the sake of world peace and stability or for our two countries’ economies and peoples”, Pippa Crerar reports.
In response, Starmer told Xi he wanted a “more sophisticated” relationship between the two countries, saying: “China is a vital player on the global stage and it is vital that we build a more sophisticated relationship.”
Xi Jinping has said the UK’s relationship with his country has gone through “twists and turns” over the years but that a more “consistent” approach is in both their interests, Pippa Crerar is reporting from Beijing.
Ahead of the talks with Keir Starmer during the first visit to China by a British prime minister in eight years, Xi said the two men would “stand the test of history” if they could “rise above differences”, the Guardian’s political editor writes in her latest full report.
At the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, Xi also appeared to reprimand Kemi Badenoch, the British Conservative leader, who has criticised Starmer for travelling to China this week.
There has been cross-party concern about China’s spying activities in the UK – with the travelling No 10 delegation operating on burner phones – and also Beijing’s human rights abuses.
However, the UK prime minister began the trip by saying he wanted to bring “stability and clarity” to the bilateral relationship after years of “inconsistency” under the Tories when it went from “golden age to ice age”.
You can read the full report here:
